British ambassador urges Japan to admit historical wrongs: report

• British ambassador to Japan Tim Hitchens urged the country to admit historical mistakes.

• The ambassador indirectly asked Japanese PM Shinzo Abe not to visit the Yasukuni Shrine again.

• British diplomat said the best way for a nation to correct historical mistakes is to admit its own errors.

TOKYO, Feb. 3 (Xinhua) -- British ambassador to Japan Tim Hitchens urged the country to admit historical mistakes and create better environment for improving ties with neighboring countries, local media reported on Monday.

Hitchens told a conference hosted by the Research Institute of Japan that the British government "would be worried by actions which heightened regional instability." The ambassador indirectly asked Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe not to visit the war-related Yasukuni Shrine again, Japan's Jiji Press reported.

When talking about Japan's historical problem, the British diplomat said the best way for a nation to correct historical mistakes is to admit its own errors.

Hitchens also stressed the importance of holding meetings of Asian leaders, as well as increasing private sector exchanges.

Even if Japan cannot build perfect relations with its neighbors right away, the country should make preparations for a good opportunity in the future, Hitchens said, calling for mechanisms to nurture trust between Japan and its neighbors.

Abe visited the Yasukuni Shrine that honors 14 Class-A convicted war criminals along with Japan's war dead on Dec. 26 last year. It is the first time in seven years that a sitting Japanese prime minister visited the controversial shrine.

The move triggered strong criticism from neighboring countries that suffered tremendously under Japan's brutal aggression and colonial rule during the first half of the 20th century.

BEIJING, Jan. 30 (Xinhua) - Japan's revision of teaching manuals was a false and dangerous move that not only risks generations of confrontation but also threatens regional development and will eventually harm Japan itself, experts said on Thursday.

Japanese Education Minister Hakubun Shimomura on Tuesday announced that the ministry has revised the country's teaching manuals for junior and senior high schools to claim areas disputed between Japan and China and between Japan and South Korea. Full story

WASHINGTON, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) -- A White House official on Wednesday urged Japan to respect history, as Japan's continued attempt to whitewash its wartime past is stoking regional tensions.

"Of course, everybody's going to have their own views, but I think it's important that there is a respect for that history in actions that are taken," said Ben Rhodes, President Barack Obama's deputy national security adviser for strategic communications. Full story

BEIJING, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) -- Japan is at the crossroads again at the start of this year, as its Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is hurtling toward right-wing fundamentalism.

His flagrant denial of Japan's wartime history was accentuated after his administration declared Tuesday it would revise its teaching manuals, in which the Diaoyu Islands -- an integral part of Chinese territories -- would be described as part of Japan. Full story